Elementary and Secondary Education - Curriculum - Importance of Diversity

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Karen Young

Nonbinding joint resolution requires K–12 curricula be inclusive, nondiscriminatory, and reflect histories of groups facing discrimination, guiding local policy with no new duties.

Hearing 3/07 at 9:00 a.m.

Summary — SJ 5: Elementary and Secondary Education — Curriculum — Importance of Diversity

Status: Joint resolution. Introduced Jan 8, 2025. Hearing (Senate) scheduled Mar 7, 2025. (Legislative record shows subsequent committee and chamber actions culminating in enrollment and filing with the Secretary of State in May 2025.)
Primary sponsor listed in the bill text: Senator Lewis Young. Companion: HJ 5 (House).

Purpose

SJ 5 is a non‑binding joint resolution expressing the State of Maryland’s policy preference that elementary and secondary school curricula be nondiscriminatory, inclusive, and reflect the histories and experiences of groups that have experienced discrimination. It affirms the State’s commitment to providing robust civic, cultural, and history education so citizens are informed and engaged.

Key provisions

Declares as State policy that:

Elementary and secondary education should be provided in a nondiscriminatory, inclusive manner.
Curricula should encompass the history and experiences of groups that have experienced discrimination based on disability, ethnicity, gender, Indigenous American tribal affiliation, race, religion or faith, and sexual orientation.
Curricula should reflect the breadth and diversity of Marylanders’ lived experiences.

States the General Assembly’s intent that all citizens feel represented in K–12 curricula.

Directs that a copy of the resolution be forwarded to specified officials and entities: the Governor; the President of the Senate; the Speaker of the House; the President of the State Board of Education; the State Superintendent of Schools; and the presidents of Maryland’s 24 local boards of education.

Who is affected / impact

Direct legal effect: None — this is a policy statement (joint resolution), not an enactment that creates new statutory duties, funding, or enforcement mechanisms.

Practical/administrative impact: The resolution reinforces and publicly affirms approaches already reflected in Maryland State Department of Education (MSDE) policy requiring culturally responsive curricula and local educational equity policies. It may guide or support local curriculum development, school system policy decisions, and public messaging about curriculum priorities.

Stakeholders: State and local education officials, local boards of education, curriculum developers, teachers, students, and families.

Procedural/timeline notes

Introduced (first reading) in January 2025. Senate committee hearings and actions occurred in January–February 2025; the Senate passed the resolution and it was transmitted to the House in February 2025. House committee and floor actions occurred in February–April 2025. Legislative records indicate the resolution was enrolled, signed by chamber leaders, and filed with the Secretary of State by May 5, 2025. (As a joint resolution, the document is a formal statement of policy rather than a law creating enforceable obligations.)

Context

The resolution reiterates and publicizes the General Assembly’s support for curricula that include the histories and perspectives of marginalized groups, aligning with MSDE requirements that curriculum and instructional materials be culturally responsive and that local systems adopt and regularly review educational equity policies.

Bill